


Five Times Gabrielle Delacour noticed Hermione Granger, and One Time Hermione noticed Gabrielle

by IhaveAbadfeelingAboutThis



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: 5 Times, Bill Weasley is a good brother-in-law, F/F, Quidditch, Veela (Harry Potter)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-02
Updated: 2019-08-02
Packaged: 2020-07-29 14:18:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20083612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IhaveAbadfeelingAboutThis/pseuds/IhaveAbadfeelingAboutThis
Summary: Gabrielle has admired Hermione for years, but then her admiration turns into something more. When will Hermione see her as something other than Fleur's little sister?





	Five Times Gabrielle Delacour noticed Hermione Granger, and One Time Hermione noticed Gabrielle

**Author's Note:**

> See the end for warnings
> 
> JKR owns the characters, stories, and entire HP world. I'm not making money off of this - I'm only doing this for my own entertainment - and maybe yours.

**One: January 1995**  
It had been terrifying, waking up at the surface of a lake, being held by two strange boys. She didn’t know where she was – the last thing she remembered was being brought from her family’s lodgings in Hogsmeade to Madame Maxime’s quarters. 

Now on shore, she was wet and chilled – and her sister was crying and talking to the Mediwitch. She could hear her mother and father shouting at somebody. The Mediwitch cast a drying charm and wrapped her in a blanket, and then moved on. Gabrielle was alone on the shore, still wondering what had happened.  
She looked around her – there were other children in blankets. They were shivering, or scowling, or talking angrily to one another. Except for one girl, with long curly hair. It was fluffed out from her head like a mushroom cap – it must not have reacted well to the drying spell. 

The mushroom girl was just looking out over the lake, brows furrowed, as if she were trying to figure something out. She must have felt Gabrielle’s gaze, because she turned towards her and smiled.  
Then she quietly mouthed:  
« Ça va ? »  
She spoke French! 

Gabrielle nodded shyly. The girl was approached by the two boys who had taken Gabrielle in to shore, and they began talking animatedly. Gabrielle wished she knew English.  
The girl was not looking at Gabrielle anymore, but Gabrielle could not stop looking at her. She had shown Gabrielle kindness when she was feeling confused and alone, and she would not forget it.

**Two: June 1997**  
Until the previous week, Gabrielle hadn’t been back to Britain since the end of the Triwizard Tournament. Her father had hired an English tutor for her as soon as they returned home – Fleur was talking about moving to England, for some reason. Or – for a reason that soon became clear. And now here was Fleur, marrying Mr. Good-enough-reason-to-leave-France. Gabrielle liked Bill, but she hadn’t really considered that Fleur might ever move away from home – until she did.

She was sitting at a table with her cousins, speaking French, because her cousins had no English. She wanted to practice her English with someone, but she didn’t know who would want to talk to her. She knew almost no one here. Perhaps Bill’s brother Charlie? He was old, but he seemed nice.  
She began to look for him, and soon spotted him on the dance floor – with the mushroom girl, whose name she had learned this week: Hermione. She didn’t look like a mushroom now – her hair was twisted elegantly and pinned to the back of her head. She was talking non-stop to Charlie, who was wearing an amused, if exasperated smile.

It occurred to Gabrielle that hearing a conversation in English might be as good as participating in one. Maybe even better. Gabrielle asked one of her cousins to dance, and he took her to the dancefloor. As they spun near to Hermione and Charlie, Gabrielle heard snatches of Hermione’s commentary:  
“…reading in a 16th century treatise on dragon care…”  
“…seems it shouldn’t be legal, and yet it has not been banned outright, at least…”  
“…pronunciation being so important, you would think that they would begin teaching us how to cast wordlessly from the very beginning. After all, what is accidental magic if not…”  
“…Third Goblin War, not the Second. The primary cause…”  
Hermione was so interesting! And the words she was using – Gabrielle could only understand about 2/3 of what Hermione was saying. 

Gabrielle felt inspired. She was going to study so hard at Beaubaxton’s and work so hard on her English that she would be able to engage in conversation with Hermione Granger, when next she saw her.

But then the Death Eaters arrived, and Hermione apparated away, and Gabrielle wondered if she would ever see Hermione again.

**Three: December 2000**  
The Ministry had suggested a Victory Ball for the first anniversary of the Battle of Hogwarts. Fleur had said that only people who hadn’t fought would think that was in good taste, and when Harry agreed she had encouraged him to say so before the Wizengamot.  
So instead, it was decided to have an annual Yule Ball, to celebrate that life goes on, but also to raise money for the ongoing rebuilding and recovery efforts.

When Fleur got married, Monsieur Delacour had successfully lobbied to become the French ambassador to the British Ministry of Magic, which meant that Gabrielle now spent her school breaks in London, for the most part – and that she was expected to attend events such as this one. 

She was sitting with Ginny Weasley when she saw her on the dance floor – Hermione - wearing a bronze dress with a low draped back. She was an elegant dancer, and Gabrielle watched as she danced with wizard after wizard: Ron, Percy, Harry, Neville Longbottom, Draco Malfoy – even Kingsley Shacklebolt.  
Gabrielle was just beginning to inadvertently ensnare people in her thrall. She envied Hermione. People liked Hermione for herself – for her gracefulness, kindness, intelligence, and yes, her beauty too. Gabrielle would never know which person would be attracted to her if she didn’t have these unwanted Veela powers.

She voiced her envy to Ginny, who corrected her: “Don’t be so sure, Gabrielle. Hermione can never tell if someone wants to be seen with her because she is famous; I can never be sure if someone wants to date someone who dated the Great Harry Potter… when the time comes, you will just have to take that leap of faith – and in time you will know if you made the right choice. All of us are at risk of not being seen – none of us will escape heartbreak.” 

Gabrielle didn’t notice Ginny looking regretfully at Harry, dancing with Daphne Greengrass. Instead, her own eyes had returned to Hermione. It had never occurred to her that anyone would want to date Hermione or be her friend simply because she was famous – she had so many wonderful qualities to recommend her without her fame.

**Four: May 2003**

Gabrielle had received special permission from the Headmistress to come to Cornwall for the weekend, to celebrate her niece’s second birthday. May was a difficult month for everyone since the War, and a child’s birthday party was an excellent excuse for a distraction, so the crowd was large enough to fill the cottage and pour out into the garden.  
She usually liked parties, but they were becoming increasingly difficult as she grew older. Now she was sixteen, and this afternoon she had been approached by 9 boys, 5 men who were embarrassingly too old for her, and 3 women – and she had only been there for 45 minutes. Gabrielle decided it was time to escape the party, and she took a walk along the cliffs. On the narrow beach below, Gabrielle spotted Hermione, standing beside Alicia Spinnet, looking out at the ocean. Hermione turned to Alicia and said something, and Alicia threw back her head and laughed. Then she pulled Hermione to her and kissed her.

“Oh!” Gabrielle gasped. She couldn’t look away, even as Alicia slid her hands under Hermione’s shirt. “Merde. I want Hermione Granger…”  
“And she is taken, yes. I’m so sorry, mon petit lapin.”  
Gabrielle turned to see her sister standing behind her. “You knew?”  
“Knew what? That Hermione dates women? Or that you are attracted to women? Or to Hermione in particular? In any case, the answer is yes. I did not know that she was out here on the beach with Alicia however.

“Hermione has conjured a blanket, Gabby. I think that is our cue to leave.”  
Gabrielle turned away, and walked on with her sister.  
“Hermione would not be a bad choice for you, petit lapin. She is strong willed, like Bill. The charm of a Veela – it is something like an Imperius – it can be overcome, or in this case, even utterly ineffective. I always knew how Bill really felt about me, because he was unaffected by my blood, by my scent – he wanted me for who I was. Hermione is the same way.”  
“But she’s with Alicia!” Gabrielle whined.  
“Don’t despair, Gabby – I don’t believe that she and Alicia are forever. Nonetheless, don’t interfere - it is important to respect relationships. And you are underage now anyway. It will be better for you to wait until later.”

Wait? Now that her feelings for Hermione had shifted – now that she had seen another woman touching her and kissing her – waiting was going to be the hardest thing she had ever done. Far more difficult than learning this ridiculous English.

**Five: July 2005**  
She was walking out of Bill’s office when Gabrielle saw her: Tight fitting dark green dragonhide trousers, a fitted ivory shirt, laced top to bottom like a corset, a chocolate brown duster, and what looked like Muggle combat boots. Gabrielle watched her as she walked by, and as she walked away she noticed her quick confident stride, and the way her hair was held back in a complicated yet practical braid.  
Bill looked through his still open door and laughed. “Quit gaping, Sis, and come in! You here to see me?”  
“Sort of… Was that Hermione Granger?”  
“You know it was.”

“But she was dressed like… like…”  
“Like me?”  
“Not like you, Bill. I doubt you could pull off a corset.”  
“Ouch! You wound me, Gabby!”  
“Dressed like a curse breaker – you all look so – anyway – she looked like a curse breaker. Does she work with you? Is she in your office often?”  
“Would you come see me more often if she was?” Bill teased.

Gabrielle blushed. “I was only here today to open my own account – so that the Harpies have somewhere to deposit my pay when I start there next week.”  
“I still can’t believe that your parents allowed it.”  
“I’d like to see them try to stop me!”  
“You sound like Fleur.”  
“Well, I may be a little less brave than Fleur. I did mollify them with the fact that I was brought onto the team mainly as a Mediwitch – I’ll be playing second reserve, so – “

“Mediwitches get hit by bludgers, too, Gabby.”  
“Yes, but for the sake of all the stars, do not tell Papa that! …I didn’t know Hermione was a cursebreaker.”

“Back to Hermione, are we?” Bill winked. “Remember the story about her and Ron and Harry breaking out of Gringott’s with a dragon?”  
She would never forget reading about it in the newspaper, thinking, “How brave, how brilliant, how exciting!” and, “I know her!” Though she didn’t know Hermione – not really.  
But Gabrielle did not say any of that – she simply nodded.  
“Well, between the loss of the dragon and the damage to the building, Gringotts was out a good bit of gold. They assessed each of the three a third of the expense, and they each have paid it off in different ways. Hermione has been working here for free since the end of the war. She finally paid off her debt about a month ago – so she’s only now getting paid.”  
“But that was almost seven years ago!”  
“Well, it was a big debt.”

Gabrielle nodded. “I had better go – I’m meeting some friends for lunch. I just wanted to drop by and say hello while I was in the building.”  
Bill smiled. “Hello!”  
Gabrielle laughed. “Oh that’s right! I never did actually say hello, did I? Hello! And – goodbye!”

Gabrielle spent the entirety of her lunch looking out the window, hoping to catch another glimpse of the intoxicating woman in the dragonhide pants.

**Plus One: September 2005**  
It was not at all clear why Bill was dragging her to a Harpies game. He had been strangely insistent when he showed up at her door.  
“Fleur’s morning sickness is all day sickness this time – she’s wanting to stay home. So we have this extra ticket.”

Hermione tried to get out of it. “Bill – it’s my birthday weekend!”  
“Your birthday isn’t until Tuesday, Hermione – and I have it on good authority that Ginny is taking you out to dinner and the club that night to celebrate. And there’s a party at the Burrow tomorrow. And it looks like you have spent a lovely morning in your pyjamas, reading and drinking coffee. I’m just asking you to spend a single afternoon with your best friend.”  
“You mean yourself, I presume.”  
Bill smiled brilliantly.

Hermione shook her head. “Bill. You know that I haven’t been to a Quidditch match since Alicia and I broke up.”  
“Which was more than a year ago.”

Bill sighed and continued. “Ok, listen. Gabrielle is going to be playing Seeker for the first time in her professional career, and I was wanting to give her a good cheering section.”  
Hermione was confused. “Gabrielle? But I thought Ginny…”  
“Don’t tell anybody – they think she’s ill – but Ginny is in Glendalough with Blaise – she’s going to propose.”  
“Oh! That’s wonderful!”  
“And their first reserve is due to deliver in two weeks, so Gabrielle is up. Please come. I don’t want her to look over in the stands and see an empty seat next to me.”  
Hermione laughed. “She had better not look into the stands – she might get hit by a bludger!”

In the end she had agreed.

Once Gabrielle took to the pitch, Hermione didn’t take her eyes off of her. At first, it was because she was, officially speaking, there to support her. But years of watching seekers (Viktor, Harry, Ginny, Charlie…) had taught her a great deal about strategy, and Gabrielle was outstanding. She must have read her opponent well, because she had tricked him three times already.  
She was focused, determined, daring. Her face had thinned out, revealing the most gorgeous cheekbones. Her eyes drifted to Gabrielle’s hands, gripping the broom. She was clearly strong, but her fingers were long, almost delicate looking, and her fingernails were trimmed short, which was very important if…

Dear God. Had she really been thinking about having Gabrielle Delacour’s fingers inside of her?  
“She’s just a kid,” Hermione whispered to herself.  
“Nineteen in two weeks’ time,” Bill corrected, and he winked at her.  
Hermione blushed.

After Gabrielle had caught the snitch, she did a victory lap around the stadium – and as she passed, she locked eyes with Hermione. Hermione ran down the stairs, and down to the gate that would let her onto the field. Being a celebrity had its perks.  
Gabrielle came in for a landing less than a meter away.  
Hermione closed the distance, and breathed, “You were brilliant! Amazing! You are amazing.”

Gabrielle smiled. “I thought you’d never notice.”  
She wrapped her arms around Hermione and kissed her. It had been worth waiting for.

**Author's Note:**

> I didn't label this underage, because Hermione doesn't see Gabrielle in a sexual way (and nothing happens between them) until Gabrielle is 19. 
> 
> But - Gabrielle first thinks of Hermione in a sexual way when she is 16 - which is the age of consent in Britain, but a year before she would be considered of age in the Wizarding World. 
> 
> FWIW, I didn't write in dialect, because I am not capable of writing all of those "zat"s and "zee"s without it sounding ridiculous. I have a hard enough time writing house elf dialogue.


End file.
